Name of the Project
Equiano subsea cable.
Location
Equiano will start in western Europe and run along the west coast of Africa, between Portugal and South Africa.
Project Owner/s
Google.
Project Description
Equiano is a private subsea cable that will connect Africa with Europe.
Google’s private subsea cables all carry the names of historical luminaries. Equiano is named after Olaudah Equiano, a Nigerian-born writer and abolitionist who was enslaved as a boy.
The cable’s state-of-the-art infrastructure is based on space-division multiplexing technology, with about 20 times more network capacity than the last cable built to serve this region.
Equiano will be the first subsea cable to incorporate optical switching at the fibre-pair level, rather than the traditional approach of wavelength-level switching. This greatly simplifies the allocation of cable capacity, providing Google with the flexibility to add and reallocate it in different locations as needed.
The cable will have branching units along the way that can be used to extend connectivity to additional African countries. The first branch is expected to land in Nigeria.
Potential Job Creation
Not stated.
Capital Expenditure
The cable is fully funded by Google.
Planned Start/End Date
A contract to build the cable was signed in the fourth quarter of 2018. The project is expected to be completed in 2021.
Latest Developments
The Equiano cable has been activated in Namibia, marking a milestone in the delivery of enhanced connectivity to Namibia and the broader Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.
The Equiano subsea cable, which landed in Namibia in June 2022, is projected to increase Internet penetration in Namibia by 7.5% by 2025, according to an economic-impact assessment conducted by Africa Practice and Genesis Analytics.
The significant increase in available capacity on the Equiano subsea cable, which provides 20 times more capacity than existing cables connecting Europe to South Africa, enables the cable’s landing partner in Namibia, Paratus, to export this capacity to the rest of the region, fostering connectivity and progress across the SADC region.
Neighbouring countries, including landlocked nations, will benefit from Equiano's presence through various cross-border terrestrial fibre networks.
Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Alcatel Submarine Networks (construction contract).
Contact Details for Project Information
Google press team, email press@google.com.